If you have not yet had an opportunity to swim with manatees, this experience is a MUST. These gentle seacows really are magnificent to see in the water – especially if you catch dozens if not hundreds at a time.
If there is one place I travel to every year, it’s to swim with the manatees in Crystal, River Florida. If you want to join the mana-team, read on for my top tips because I have done this trip MANY times.
Teaser: this is one of the easiest trips. Ever. It’s why I keep doing it, it’s logistically TOO EASY and relative to my other travel, this is always my cheapest trip (even though I eat at least 10 lbs of fresh food).
Where is Crystal River
Located on the West Side of Florida, this is a very sleepy town with very little tourism (compared to other places in Florida).
Yes they get busy during events like the annual manatee festival, but one of the things I love is you can enjoy this place year-round for manatees (or many-tees) and you can easily drive around, find parking, almost never make a reservation for restaurants and in general, it’s an EASY trip.
(I think you can see why I like it).
Why are there manatees here?
It’s tempting to say “why not”, but that helps nobody. There are 2 reasons manatees come here:
- Three Sisters Spring
This magical spring is 72 degrees year round. This means when it’s “cold” in other parts of the USA, the manatees will swim to Crystal River where the water is relatively warmer than other places and hangout until it gets warm again. This is why you see SO MANY manatees in Crystal River in the winter (I’ve seen 80+ in the spring) - The grass
They eat it. There’s a lot of it in Crystal River.
This is a livestream from Three Sister Spring…
How do you swim with the manatees?
Tours or DIY, there are a few ways you can see them. I love using Viator and sorting by TOP RATED tours.
Personally, I send the drone, find them, then kayak over to them and jump in. But if this is not the method to your madness then there are 3 ways…
Option 1: Rent a kayak (or a water bike)
I always go with Paddles Outdoor Rentals and not just cuz I’m on their homepage. Chris and team are rockstars. They also do tours. Tell them I sent you. I don’t get any kind of kickback, they’ll just treat you extra nice.
The pro? You can paddle around. There is a lot to see beyond the spring. Go to Hunter Springs. You’ll find manatees there, too. And WOW the birds. Make sure you see them, too.
The con? This requires exercising. Which I am sometimes not a fan of.
You can also ride a water bike with them. Which I think is fun. But it’s way slower than a kayak.
PRO: being ‘higher up’ makes it WAY easier to see manatees (that is, if you don’t have a drone)
CON: Exercise.
Option 2: Get on a boat and do a snorkel tour
I did this staying at the Plantation Inn. This is the “do it for me super lazy way” of doing it.
They scout the manatees for you, they boat over to them. You dive in. They serve you hot chocolate after. It’s also the most expensive. But fun. I prefer DIY because I like to spend a lot of time on the water.
Option 3: Look at the manatees from Three Sister Springs
It’s kind of absurdly expensive in my opinion to do this, namely because there isn’t anything to do except stand on the walkway and look. It’s not that interesting for that long and if you’re with more than one person, this can quickly get expensive ($20 during season for adults).
They make you pay a decent amount to walk and/or drive in. But you can do it, stand on the walkway, and look at the manatees (you’re not allowed to get in the water from here).
Option 4: Look from Hunter Springs
Parking is cheap. Like $5 for the day. Or you can park a few blocks away for free and walk in into Hunter Springs. There is a small beach/sand area so bring some beach gear. And the swimming area is roped off. So just diiiive right in and there are often manatees RIGHT THERE.
Below is a vlog style video of where I took my PARENTS in Crystal River.
Where to stay in Crystal River
Hotels are slim picking in Crystal River. There aren’t a lot of options as to where to stay, but there ARE some options. Below is a list of where I’ve stayed, but you can also see the top rated and reviewed hotels.
Good: Airbnb
I’ve stayed at a variety of Airbnbs. The selection in Crystal River is just so-so. There are none I recommend.
Better: Hampton Inn
- Pro: Great location, free parking, has an OK pool. Basic clean rooms.
- Con: It’s a very basic hotel
Best: Plantation Inn
- Pro: Great location, free parking, a pool with a view, on site games and amenities (restaurant, bar, etc)
- Con: It’s an older property and everything about it feels “tired” for what the price is.
There’s more than manatees
Here’s some tips and other things not to miss when you’re in Crystal River. I also love to check GROUPON! You never know what kind of gems you’ll find on their latest discounted tours for Crystal River.
Where to eat in Crystal River
Crystal River is one of my MOST fave places to eat VERY FRESH and VERY INEXPENSIVE seafood. All of these are in my videos.. but FYI you’re a sucker if you miss out on…
- Katch Twenty Two: go for dinner. It’s AMAZING. You MUST make a reservation. They are not open everyday and their dining room is tiny.
- Kelly’s Half Shell Pub: go for happy hour and eat more shrimp and oysters (raw or baked) than you can possibly imagine. Their bloody marys are tasty.
- Seafood Seller: It’s Nawlin’s themed. Eat the shrimp. And everything.
- The Crab Plant: Get the grab. Obviously.
- The Freezer: South near homosassa. Eat the shrimp. And crab.
Wait but what else?
Where I always stay. Where I ALWAYS EAT, what else there is to do.. there’s a lot. I’ve given you the gist above, one thing I’d suggest, look at the CHAPTERS within each of the videos. It tells you exactly what’s in there, plus in my opinion, LOOKING AT VIDEO vs. looking at words will 1,000x tell you exactly what it’s like. Go watch the videos above!
Skipped to the end?
I hope this post has either inspired you to buy a drone or visit the manatees. I support either one because I LOVE BOTH OF THEM. Especially combined.